The Ghost in the Lab
by thegreatbigpoof
Summary: A Bones and Supernatural crossover. Dean is doing a regular salt n' burn- at the Jeffersonian. He is caught by Dr. Brennan. Castiel swoops in to create an unlikely alliance to stop a serial killer who seems to have the single intent of creating vengeful spirits. Established Destiel (Deancas, Dean/Cas). Cas is an angel; no canon conflicts included. Current events Bones.
1. I Knew I Smelt Barbecue

**A/N: Sorry short first chapter, they will get longer! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything nor do I make moolah**

It was Sam's fault, really.

He was the one who'd found the case in the first place, but then he had to get a fucking cold complete with a hacking, obnoxious cough. So of course, Dean stepped in like the good big brother he was and said he could do it on his own.

Sam, of course, protested, but Dean had realized that Sam would be more of a burden than a help. So he rolled his eyes at Sam's protests and made the two hour drive to Washington, D.C. and left Sam behind. "Dude, it'll only be, like, two days. I'll probably be back tomorrow." Dean had told Sam before he left.

It was supposed to be your average salt n' burn, but Dean hadn't counted on the body belonging to a suspected murder victim. Dean had groaned when Sam had called to tell him the new location of the body; it would involve more sneaking around than usually necessary. But Dean did it. He snuck into the building earlier on and hid in the bathrooms, and made his way into the lab when he'd thought everyone had left, and set to work.

He had dropped the match onto the bones and was watching them burn to ash when he heard a woman's furious voice.

"What the Hell are you doing to my evidence?" she demanded, tearing Dean's eyes away from the burning corpse. A medium height auburn haired woman was standing in a nearby doorway. Before Dean could make his getaway, the strange woman met him at the staircase. She didn't bother with the fire extinguisher; the bones were beyond saving at that point. She took Dean by surprise and attacked him skillfully, rendering him unconscious.

"I don't know what his name is, Booth! He destroyed my evidence so I…" Dean awoke to the woman talking to someone- apparently named Booth- on the phone, "…They were burning, Booth. I had a pretty good idea of what he was doing there. Okay. Thanks." The woman hung up the phone and turned to stare down the intruder, who was handcuffed to a railing.

"What the Hell…" Dean murmured, rubbing his temples with his not-handcuffed hand. The woman harrumphed, and all of Dean's doubts of whether harrumphing could in actuality be done were assuaged.

"What's your name? What were you doing to my evidence?" the woman demanded. Dean's head pounded too much to come up with an alibi.

"Dean. I was… Well, I was salting and burning them." Dean shot haphazard grin at the enraged woman before him.

"Why did you do that?!" the woman demanded. Before Dean could even come up with a lie, let alone tell it, a man (who was best described as tall, dark, and forehead) stormed into the room.

"Bones! We have to get him to the interrogation room! At the very least we need to get him sitting down, and," Booth tried to whisper, "get him a glass so we can get his fingerprints."

"I heard that." Dean said tiredly, "Look, do whatcha gotta do. I won't be here long, anyway." Booth smirked.

"We'll see about that." he said menacingly.

"Sure we will. As soon as Cas gets his feathery ass down here…" Dean chuckled.

"What?" Booth asked, confused. Dean just shrugged and smirked, as if to say, 'I didn't hear anything'. Booth groaned and knelt down to unlock Dean's handcuffs, then pulled the man up by his arm.

"Oh, manhandling! My favorite." Dean teased flirtatiously, causing Booth to groan again and proceed to lead the other man into Brennan's office, pushing him into the chair across form the desk. He relocked the cuffs to the chair. As he stood, up the lightbulbs started to flicker and a rustling sound could be heard. Bones and Booth visibly jumped, but Dean just cracked a sly smile.

"Cas, finally." he said cockily. Castiel looked annoyed.

"Hello, Dean. I see you've managed to get yourself caught." Cas grumbled, which only caused Dean's grin to grow.

"I just wanted and excuse to see you." Dean teased, oblivious to Brennan and Booth's shocked expressions. Booth was crossing himself.

"Who… What the Hell are you… How did you get in here?" Booth exploded to life, pulling his gun.

"I am Castiel, Angel of the Lord. I flew in." Cas's face held a barely visible smirk. Booth crossed himself again.

"Dean, these people have something important they need to tell you. Agent Seeley Booth, inform Dean of your current case." Castiel commanded, gliding over to where Dean stayed in the chair and placing his hand on Dean's shoulder.

"Umm… A bunch of bodies murdered by the same serial killer have been salted and burned like today's. All of the others were just after the investigation and already in the ground." Booth didn't understand why he was telling these madmen this; he just felt compelled.

"So, what, the same killer's been engineering ghosts or something?" Dean asked, turning up to look into Castiel's eyes.

"Yes, it would appear so. I think Agent Booth and Dr. Temperance Brennan will be in need of our help to solve this case." Castiel said calmly. Before either of the interrogators could protest, Dean responded to Cas.

"Well, sounds like I'd better call Sammy."

**A/N: I'll probably update every other day or every three days with somewhere between 1,500 words and 2,500 words after this. I reply to all of the reviews because I LOVE them and they fuel my writing. mwah!**

**PS anyone catch the Buffy reference? Review to tell me what it was if you did and I'll give you internet cookies!**


	2. It's time for Sweets!

**AN: Chapter two! Two in 24 hours, yay!**

**Disclaimer: The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars but in ourselves that I don't own either of these and am therefore an underling...**

"You're not calling anyone!" Booth said, angry that two men could so quickly confound him. He was also very furious that Castiel was claiming to be an angel.

"I thought I could call a lawyer?" Dean said, phrasing his question at a demand. Booth groaned; Dean had him there.

"Yeah, fine. But first we gotta get you down to a holding cell. And a an interrogation room." Booth conceded, moving to uncuff the handcuffs from the chair and onto Dean's other hand.

"Listen, I don't know how you know about our case, and I sure as Hell don't know how you managed to make me spit it out like that, but I do know one thing: You're not an angel." Booth asserted to Cas, "Angels don't wear fucking trench coats."

"Actually this is just my vessel, Jimmy Nov-" Cas began, but Booth cut him off by handcuffing him with the spare pair he kept. Indignant, Cas stood straight up. Dean chuckled. This was surely the first time the angel had ever been handcuffed.

"Dude, why don't you just mojo us outta here?" Dean asked his companion, ignoring the others escorting them.

"Because, Dean," Castiel began, "We need their help on the case. This way we have already made contact rather than having to walk in here demanding their help with no way in. If I used my 'mojo' to get us out than we will be set back." Dean could see Cas attempting to make air quotes with his handcuffed hands.

"Why do we need the FBI anyway…" Dean grumbled, and Cas just smirked at the other man's independence, realizing it was rhetorical.

Booth was just confused while he listened to the two men. They were obviously close; they interacted as best friends- or more- would. They seemed to have shared delusions of religious importance… Sweets would have a field day with them. It was rather late at night- or extremely early in the morning- so Booth called Sweets to tell him to meet him at the office.

"Hey, Sweets. Yeah, I know what time it is, but we got to people here who need you to do your shrinky thing on them. It'll be easier if you just come out to the FBI Headquarters and do it. One of them was burning the bones from two days ago. Great, see ya Sweets." Booth hung up to see Dean and Cas looking over their shoulders at him. Booth was in the back of the two and Brennan stood in front.

"Dude, no shrinks." Dean said gruffly.

"Maybe it's best if you see a psychologist, Dean. I believe it could help you." Cas spoke up fearlessly.

"Cas, Why the Hell would I need to see a goddamned shrink?" Dean demanded, turning all of his attention to Cas now. Booth was once again on the outside of their conversation, forgotten by the two. He saw Castiel visibly flinch at the blasphemation. _Odd, _Booth thought, _If Castiel really is an angel, then why is he letting Dean talk to him like that? Shouldn't he be dust in the wind by now?_

"Dean, perhaps with the help of an outside opinion you will be able to realize how truly wonderful you are, rather than spending each day regretful." Castiel responded, and Dean turned pink and tried to hide a smile.

"Dude…" Dean complained, obviously embarrassed at the public compliment, but he couldn't hide his smile very well.

"I only say this because I care about you, Dean." Castiel assured Dean, and Dean's grin grew as the man blond man lovingly bumped the other man's shoulder with his own.

Booth, seeing this conversation take place, realized that maybe this relationship was more than just friends. As they neared the Booth's car, Booth decided that surely this man was not an angel. What kind of angel would be in a relationship with not only a human, but another man?

"I assure you I am an angel, Agent Booth. God does not care about matters of the heart, only that you are moral and just." Castiel answered Booth's unanswered question as Booth opened the car door for the two men in handcuffs, and Booth fought a rising embarrassed flush.

When Dean and Cas sat down, Booth uncuffed a hand and locked the cuff to the door for both men. Now with a hand free, Dean put his arm around Castiel and Cas leaned into the half embrace. As Brennan and Booth got into the car, Dean kissed the top of shorter man's head and shot Booth a look, as if to say, 'watcha gon' do 'bout it?' (in a very sassy way, of course).

Booth just shook his head in disbelief and Brennan smiled a little bit. A sharp tone rang out and Brennan checked her phone.

"Sweets is in his car; he's about ten minutes away." the woman said, speaking for the first time in a while. Booth nodded and grunted something that sounded like 'good'.

When they finally pulled into the FBI headquarters, Sweets was there to meet them. His eyes widened at the sight of the two men, whose handcuffs had been reattached properly and were currently being led out of the car.

"So these are the guys you called me out of bed at 3 AM to talk to?" Sweets asked, obviously annoyed. Booth ignored Sweets's annoyance and led the small party into the building, unlocking the doors. **(AN: IDK whether or not the main FBI office is like 24/7 or what, so I'm gonna guess it's not seeing as how it's not DQ or Taco Bell) **He went into the interrogation room and unlocked Dean and Cas's handcuffs before leaving them in there so Booth could talk to Sweets.

"Go see if you can get their names- their real names. The brunet's name is apparently Castiel. the blond one's first name is Dean, so he says. He think he's an angel." Booth spat out.

"Dean thinks he's an angel?" Sweets asked, confused that the less angelically named of the two would think he's an angel.

"No, Castiel does." Booth huffed, and Sweets nodded before entering the room. Cas and Dean had both sat down at this point, Dean's arm around Castiel protectively once again. Sweets noticed it right of the bat and immediately surmised they were dating.

"Dean, Castiel… Sorry for bringing you out here so late." Sweets said, trying to lighten the mood.

"Sorry for burning a body so late." Dean responded, and Castiel tried to hide his smirk with a disapproving glare. Dean grinned in his boyfriend's direction, and Sweets chuckled.

"Yes… Why were you doing that?" Sweets asked. Dean glanced at Castiel with a question in his eyes, and Cas gave the other man a nearly imperceptible nod. _So they're close enough to understand each other without words…_ Sweets thought.

"See, Cas here says you're gonna help us with the latest case, so I goes I'm s'posed to tell you the truth. I was burning the body to get rid of the ghost of the dead lady." Dean continued before Sweets could call him delusional, "There's been a pattern. This killer keeps creating ghosts to leave behind. Now, he's gotta be doin something to make this happen, cuz not all of these people are gonna be choosing the vengeful route, even if they all got murdered. Statistics don't match up." Dean then turned to Cas, "Show him some mojo to prove it, babe." Sweets couldn't suppress his eyebrow raise, try as he might, at the man's odd request. He, however, said nothing about it.

Suddenly then lights started to flicker, and thunder that was so loud it sounded as though it was from within the room itself started. One of the lightbulbs blew out before it all stopped suddenly.

"We need your help." The angel demanded, "God commands it." Dean stifled a laugh.

"Well, technically your boss's boss, king of the dick angels, commands it, cuz God's kinda a no show right now." Dean joked, earning him a real disapproving glare.

"What the Hell was that?" Booth demanded, bursting into the room. Sweets was still shell shocked.

"It was my grace. I was proving Dean's claim to Lance by showing some 'mojo'" Castiel answered, using the air quotes as usual.

"What…?" Booth trailed off when the dark haired man disappeared. Dean chuckled at something behind Booth.

"Agent Booth." Castiel called solemnly, and Booth whirled around at the sound. Sweets jumped in his seat.

"I believe we have some things to discuss." Sweets squeaked out. Dean agreed with the man, and repeated his earlier request.

"Exactly. Now can I call Sammy?"

**AN: So please, please, please, let me let me let meeeee, let me get what I want, this time. And this time I want reviews! If you review you can have vegetarian Chinese food. It's ****delish! Hey it's 1500 words! It will only increase in number (like the Roman Empire, but this will not fail terribly after wars and stuff)! **


	3. From What Do You 8ase Your Pattern?

**A/N: Yay! New Chapter! Sorry I didn't get this out yesterday, I had a football game to go to and NO time to post! Grr! Wowwee! 5 followers, 1 favorite, 3 reviews in just 2 chapters? That's sooo awesome! Sorry if I seem kinda small towny from thinkin so, but I'm so proud! Heehee! I love you guys!**

**Disclaimer: Neither of these wonderful creations are mine. Only the writing can I rightfully claim... D:**

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"Okay, fine. You can call your brother," Booth conceded, "but first you gotta clear some things up for me." Dean nodded, waiting for Booth to continue.

"You're saying your friend Cas here is an angel, and that's how he just caused a lightbulb to pop and did the disappearing act?" Booth asked.

"Boyfriend, but yeah. Any other questions, or can I call Sammy now?" Dean responded, itching to get in touch with his brother.

"One more: this killer we're dealing with is purposefully creating ghosts?" Booth asked incredulously.

"Vengeful spirits." Castiel corrected, and Booth chuckled, gesturing for Dean to go call his brother. Sweets noticed when Booth was left with the angel without Dean, he became obviously uncomfortable.

"So, Castiel. How did you meet Dean?" Sweets asked, trying to stay casual. He was intrigued as to how an angel of the lord ended up dating a fugitive.

"I raised Dean up from Hell." Castiel replied stoically, and Booth seemed to choke on air, turning to the angel.

"You did what? Why Dean?" Booth asked. Surely there was a reason the man had been in Hell.

"Dean was in Hell because he sold his soul to bring his brother back to life, Agent Booth. He went to the pit for purely righteous reasons. Dean is the righteous man and was needed to serve as the archangel Michael's vessel to fight Lucifer in the apocalypse." Castiel answered Booth's questions, both the asked and the unasked. Booth looked utterly astounded that he'd missed so much going on in the world.

"And you and Dean are… dating?" Sweets asked, insure if that was the correct term for what the two men were. Castiel simply nodded to answer Sweets's question.

"Okay, Sammy's feeling better and on his way. He was sick when I left, but it seems like it was a forty-eight hour thing, cuz it left pretty quick." Dean said, entering the interrogation room.

"Well, while we wait for your brother, we should compare notes. If I'm going to believe you." Booth suggested, directing the other men to the room where all of the info on the case was. He then ducked into the other room to grab Dr. Brennan.

"Hey Bones. So, whadya think?" Booth asked his partner when he entered the room. Brennan grimaced at something; whether that something was the nickname or the case, Booth had no idea.

"I think it's impossible. I also think that seeing as how we have no other way to explain these… phenomena at the moment, we'll just have to take their word for it. They may have information we need to help with the case, Booth." Brennan replied.

"Yeah, I think so too. I'm gonna call Max and tell him we might be late. They're all in confer

nee room C." Booth replied, and went to go call Brennan's father, who was babysitting their daughter, Christine.

Brennan went to join the men in the conference room and the Booth rejoined the group moments later. Dean whistled at the sight in front of them.

"That's quite the intel ya got there." Dean commented, and though he was being facetious, he wasn't wrong. There were three maps, a wall near full of pictures, post-it notes with cliche question marks, the whole shebang.

"Are you sure you're not the serial killer?" Dean joked, gesturing toward the spiderweb connecting the victims to laughed.

"We've essentially got nothing on this guy so far. He doesn't leave any marks except for a knife stolen from the household where the victim lived. There are never any prints, and the bodies are found outside in the nearest park. The vics are all different; we've never had two of the same race, age, height, weight, hair color… No similarities. The only pattern we've got is that half are male, half female. The body you burnt back at the lab brought the body count to four dead women, three dead men. We're expecting another male body any day now." Booth informed the crew. He was right about the victims, though. They were organized by death date.

Sally Sparrow. Caucasian, blonde, female, 5'4", 120 lbs., 16. Lived in Brooklyn, New York. Worked at a daycare for children. Stabbed directly in the heart.

Andrew Mitchell. Caucasian, brunet, male, 6'1", 190 lbs,, 40. Lived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Worked as a heart surgeon. Stabbed directly in the heart.

Martha Jones. African American, died purple hair, female, 5'9", 140 lbs., 32. Lived in Durham, North Carolina. Worked as a police officer. Stabbed directly in the heart.

Matt Parker. African American, black colored hair, male, 5'3", 200 lbs., 48. Lived in Concord, New Hampshire. Worked as a 911 telephone operator. Stabbed directly in the heart.

Jane Schume. Indian American, died faint blue hair, female, 5'6", 130 lbs., 64. Lived in Raymond, Maine. Retired, but work as a nurse for the Red Cross. Stabbed directly in the heart.

Gabriel Gray. Indian American, died red hair, male, 6', 150 lbs., 24. Lived in Montpelier, Vermont. Worked as a firefighter. Stabbed directly in the heart.

Carrie Lynn. Asian American, black hair, female, 5'2", 120 lbs., 56. Lived in Boston, Massachusetts. Worked as an EMT. Stabbed directly in the heart.

"The age and the job…" Dean murmured, already having figured out the pattern. His brain had begun to function like that; it was crazy how easily he could pick out a killing pattern.

"What do you mean?" Booth asked, intrigued by how easily Dean had spotted something. Dean pointed at the stats in front of them.

"The ages. 16, 24, 32, 40, 48, 56, 64. All multiples of eight, leading up to eight multiplied by eight. All of them did something that saves lives. So my guess is our last vic will be an eight year old boy in the northeast who's done something heroic recently." Dean answered. Booth gaped at how easily the other man came to the conclusion.

"Why the eights?" Booth asked, curious, "And why the life saving stuff?" Dean stood for a moment, thinking.

"Maybe it's associated with some kind of demon or monster. It could be a summoning ritual. Sacrificial killings associated with eight and life saving." Dean guessed.

"The Eight Immortals." Castiel spoke up. The group turned to the solemn angel.

"Care to elaborate, Cas?" Dean pressed, obviously used to the man's crypticness. Castiel sighed, as if offended by the others's lack of knowledge.

"As Dr. Brennan knows," Cas began, earning him a smile from the woman, "The EIght Immortals are of the Taoist belief system. They have the power to bestow life. It is possible someone is trying to get their attention… Possibly draw them here to Earth."

"And that's a bad thing because?" Booth asked, "These guys sound pretty peaceful, what with the bestowing life and all."

"The perpetrator of the crimes would most likely try to engage the Immortals in a fight, ravaging the Earth. Also, the Earth would likely be overrun with returned souls because of the Immortals's kind nature. The resources would run dry. There is a reason they keep their distance." Castiel answered.

"Okay, so bad." Booth surmised, and the group murmured in agreement.

"But why are they all turning ghost?" Dean asked the angel.

"It's probable that the perpetrator is using magic to ensure that they 'go ghost', to more easily attract the Immortals's attention by desecrating the memories of the heroes as well as the heroes themselves." Castiel answered, complete with finger quotations. Dean chuckled, ashamed for the horrible timing of it.

"Okay, so a lead. Good." Booth started, interrupting himself and losing his train of thought with a yawn. Brennan yawned as well, proving that the damned things were indeed contagious.

Maybe we should meet up in the morning," Dean suggested, scribbling his number on a nearby empty piece of paper, "Here's my number. Contact us in the morning, we can meet up when Sam gets here." The rest of the group agreed vigorously, and they split up for the night to get some much needed rest.

Even Castiel was grateful; he'd gotten used to rest from spending nights with Dean curled up in his arms or curled up in Dean's.

**A/N: Please Review! I love writing for you guys, and I love knowing that you guys love it too! (Not ****including this lil bit in the parenthesis, I wrote 1500! WOwzErz! Hahaha Sorry my chapters are so short, but I'm gonna post like one every day, maybe sometimes two a day.)  
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	4. Sorry 'Bout the Ashes, I'll Sweep Up

**A/N: So this is't very long, but I wanted to get out another chapter before midnight to try to keep up a one-a-day sort of thing. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Neither a plane nor a train could get me these rights, Sam-I-Am.**

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Booth was awoken by the shrill tone of the phone receiving a call. He crept out of bed stealthily so he wouldn't wake Dr. Brennan, picked up the phone and left the room before it could let loose another wail.

"Y'ello?" Booth asked drowsily, checking the clock on the thermostat in the hall. It was nine A.M. He and Dr. Brennan may be a little late, but they'd been up late last night. When the others at the Jeffersonian heard the story- if they heard the story, more like- they'd understand. That got Bones off the hook. What about Booth? What would he tell the FBI? The department would never believe him. This new case was a nightmare.

"Booth? You mind telling me why there's a pile of ash where there was evidence last night?" Cam asked over the phone. Booth winced. They'd forgotten to tell Cam what had happened, She'd walked in that morning to a pile of ash!

"Ummm, yeah, about that… It's easier to explain in person…" Booth answered, and agreed to come in as quickly as possible. He crept bcd into the bedroom and roused Brennan, shaking her lightly, and went off to call Dean and Castiel when she awoke. Cam would need some solid proof if she was going to help them, and all thy really had so far was an angel in that department. And, of course, eight. Picking the phone back up from the nightstand where he'd left it, Booth grabbed his jacket from the night before and fished out the number Dean had given him. He typed it into the phone and waited for the pickup.

"Hello?" Castiel rasped into the phone.

"Hi, Castiel… sir? May I speak to Dean?" Booth asked, shaking slightly. The sir was obviously forced, but Booth felt he needed to show respect for the supposed agent of God.

"You do not need to call me sir, Agent Booth." Castiel replied, and Dean could be heard over the phone, "Who was it, Cas?" Booth then heard the angel reply, "Agent Booth. I'm assuming he's calling to summon us?" The end of Cas's sentence rose a bit as if it was meant as a statement to Dean and a question to Booth.

"Yeah, we're summoning you back to the Jeffersonian. We need to introduce you to the rest of our murder solving team, and we need you as proof that there's a legitimate reason the bones were burnt." Booth responded to Castiel's half-asked question.

"We need to go back to the Jeffersonian." Castiel said, presumably to Dean, and Booth heard the other man respond, "Alright. Tell him we'll be there in a half hour. You may not need to eat, Cas, but I sure as Hell do." Booth could hear what seemed to be a kiss being planted on the angel's head.

"We'll be there in a half hour. Dean needs to eat." Castiel said to Booth, before hanging up abruptly. Booth sighed and went in to start getting dressed. He and Bones ate breakfast and left for the Jeffersonian, kissing their daughter and Max goodbye before they departed. They arrived at the building a few minutes before Dean and Castiel were supposed to arrive.

* * *

Dean insisted on driving Cas and himself to breakfast at the local diner, even though Cas pointed out that "It would be so much faster if you allowed me to transport us there", but Dean wouldn't have it.

"Baby's been with me through everything. Just cuz now I got Angel Express, don't mean I'm just gonna abandon her." Cas chuckled at Dean's statement, and languidly ran his fingers through the other man's sandy hair. Though Cas was still an angel, he was so much more relaxed when he and Dean were alone. Sure, when others were around Cas felt a subconscious need to become the soldier again, but just with Dean he became himself. Not Castiel the angel, just Cas. Cas the friend, Cas the lover, Cas the guy who could and will totally kick your ass if you threaten his family.

The car finally pulled in to the diner, and the two men got out of the car, Dean slinging his arm around Cas's waist. Dean had become much more relaxed and open about the nature of his and Cas's relationship after a week or two of getting settled. He was surprised how little people really commented on it. Of course, Bobby and Sam were always going on about how they "knew it all along", and Ellen and Jo just smiled conspiratorially whenever they saw the two together. Life was good. The two ate a companionable breakfast, Cas humoring Dean by submitting to eating a plate of pancakes even when he didn't need them. They finished up without Dean even winking once at the waitress, and headed back to the Impala to drive the last five minutes to the Jeffersonian. Yes, life was good.

* * *

"Oh, they're here!" Bones said while exiting the car, calling Booth's attention to the sleek lack ride pulling into the parking lot. Booth let out a low wolf whistle at the car, impressed.

"Ya like her?" Dean called out, patting the hood of his baby as he got out of the car, Cas following suit. Dean circled to the passenger side and threw his arm around his boyfriend, guiding them toward the other couple.

"What year is she? '68?" Booth asked, clearly excited. Dean grinned. Apparently this guy appreciated a good car.

"'67. 1967 Chevy Impala." Dean corrected, grin widening at Booth's appreciatively lingering looks at the car. Booth whistled again, and looked up at Dean.

"Sweet." He grinned even more widely than Dean, "Where's Sam?" Booth was looking forward to meeting the other brother. These were some interesting people.

"He's getting' into town 'round noon, maybe one or two." Dean responded, allowing his face to return to its cocky half smile.

"Shall we head inside?" Castiel suggested, leaning into Dean's half embrace. Booth nodded and allowed Dr. Brennan lead the group into the building. It was, after all, her domain.

"Here comes the hard part." Booth grumbled, grimacing.

"What's that?" Dean asked, looking to his left over Castiel at Booth.

"Convincing the squints." Booth responded, Dean matched his face to Booth's grimace. He knew the science-y types had a hard time with this stuff; he was still waiting for Brennan's seemingly inevitable freak out. The group made their way into the building to face the others unexcited.

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**A/N: So tomorrow I will take longer than just an hour typing out a nice long chapter for you guys, probs like 2,500 min. It'll be great, I promise. Please review, favorite, and follow! I respond to all comments!**


	5. Welcome to the Lab

**A/N: Okay, I know I said I'd update a long chapter for you guys yesterday, but then I remembered I have friends and had to go hang out with them. Weird, right? Then I had to babysit and do homework today, but I finally wrote some for you tonight! It's not very much, but I almost decided to put it off til tomorrow, so I'm just proud that I kicked my ass into following commitments (albeit in a late fashion). Tomorrow I PROMISE a chapter; you'll be definitely getting one every night through Thursday, Friday is a maybe, and Saturday you will not be getting a chapter unless I do it in the morning cos I'm going to the GAY PRIDE PARADE w/ my BFF and sleepover fun it'll be great! Yay I'm excited I just wanted to share the excitement with you guys! Probably post on Sunday as well. I can pretty much promise a chapter most school nights til I finish this.**

**Disclaimer: Still not mine! Though they would make a good Xmas present… *smiles evilly***

"Care to explain the strange men, Booth?" Cam demanded as the group walk in the door.

"Not gonna bother with a hello first?" Booth joked, attempting to put off the inevitable argument. Even Booth couldn't believe which side he was on; how would he get the squints to believe it as well? Cam frowned at Booth's ill attempt at humor.

"This is Dean and this is Castiel." Brennan told Cam, cutting right to the chase, "Dean burned the bones to destroy an avenging spirit. Castiel is his boyfriend, and an angel of the Lord." If anyone else had said this, Cam would have immediately doubled over with laughter. Brennan's tendency to stay away from jokes, however, made Cam unsure whether or not the other scientist was joking.

"Excuse me?" Cam asked, "Are you alright, Dr. Brennan?" Booth chuckled, knowing how foreign the whole situation must have seemed to Dr. Saroyan.

"She is telling the truth, Camille." Castiel spoke up, his gravely voice surprising the doctor. She noticed the attractive blond man's arm casually slung around the possibly even more attractive dark haired, trench coated man. They were the only people Cam didn't recognize; obviously they were the "Dean and Castiel" mentioned by her seemingly demented colleague.

"Here, Cas'll prove it to you." The sandy haired man- Dean, Cam deduced- spoke up. Castiel, or, apparently, "Cas", nodded stoically before disappearing, leaving Dean's arm to drop to his side. Cam looked around wildly, devastatingly confused.

"Over there, Cam." Booth stated, pointing behind the doctor. Cam spun around to see the so-called Angel standing on the steps to the platform that was empty of all but scientific instruments. And a pile of ash. Castiel lifted his arms slightly above his sides and the lights flashed, causing a shadow of wings to appear behind him.

"Woah, why didn't you do that for us?" Booth demanded, and Dean chuckled.

"He likes to save that one for the bigger skeptics, dontcha, Cas?" Dean said lovingly to the angel who had reappeared at his side. Cas didn't reply, only allowing a small smile to grace his lips.

"Woah…" A scruffy man with a beard shouted, running over to the group with a slender brunette in tow. Cam smiled at them, glad she wouldn't have to sound as crazy to them as Dr. Brennan had to her while explaining the situation.

"Slow down, honey!" The brunette said, trying to calm down the man. He just gaped at the dark figure in the room.

"You saw that, right Angie? You all saw that? With the wings and the teleporting?" the man asked, looking to the woman for confirmation.

"Yes, we all saw it." the woman sighed, obviously used to this sort of behavior from the man. The man just grinned even more widely, and stepped over to Castiel.

"So, what are you? A secret government project? Has the government been experimenting with human teleportation? Are you a member of a secret society?" the man questioned, "Have you drugged us?"

"No, I have not drugged you. I am Castiel, and this is Dean. I am an angel of the Lord." Castiel responded, causing the new man to laugh.

"Alright, Mr. Angel of the Lord, My name's Jack Hodgins. This is my wife, Angela." Jack replied, chuckling and gesturing to the dark haired woman. Dean stuck his free hand out to shake the couple's hands.

"Dean, Cas's boyfriend. I'm afraid I'm your bones-burner. The spirit was killing people, it had to be done." Dean smiled cockily, causing Angela to raise an eyebrow.

"They're here to help us with the case." Booth supplied. Hodgins was sufficiently confused; how could these two delinquents help them catch a serial killer? All they had to tip them off of the connection was the identical killing method. How would these guys see something like that if all they were doing was salting and burning bones?

Jack's questions were soon answered as the group explained what had happened to him, Cam and Angela. Once everything was cleared up they were more than happy to help. After the group told the newcomers their discoveries, Angela, Jack, and Cam filled them in on the new developments. Even though Dean had burned the bones, Hodgins had already taken the beetles off of the body and gotten a time of death.

"June 8th. Twenty days ago." Hodgins told the group, "According to your Immortals theory, all of these deaths relate to eight in multiple ways, right? Well all of our time of deaths have been estimated near the eighth. What if it's always on the eighth? This is the first time we've got a definite, on the dot TOD."

"Assuming the murderer is following the pattern, we only have ten days until he finishes the ritual and calls forth the slumbering Immortals." Castiel guessed, earning a nod of approval from Jack.

"Well, fuck." Dean swore. Suddenly a shaggy haired giant stumbled throughout the doors. This brunet man put everyone on edge except for Dean and Castiel, who instantly brightened.

"Sammy! You finally made it!" Dean shouted, making his way over to his little brother to pull him into a hug. Everyone else instantly relaxed; this was the famous Sam Winchester. Sam grinned goofily.

"Hey! What'd I miss?"

**A/N: Sam's back in the mix! Remember, he's not evil or anything cos I don't wanna have any angst outside of my imagination or else I will severely confuse myself. PLEASE REVIEW! I LOVE REVIEWS SOOOO MUCH! Thank you, betsybugaboo, ANGELUSLOVESYOU, you-idjits, buffybonesangelfan, and The WhoLockian's Journal for reviewing the four chapters before this! Love my reviewers!**


	6. Heya Sammy

**A/N: New chapter! Yay! okayyy so I know this is pretty much best-days Sam and Dean for happiness but I love it when they're happy so deal, k?**

**I got no reviews for the last chapter, so I didn't really wanna write, so this is sorta late (and short but that's cuz I also wrote the beginnings of another chapter today that you guys'll see like two or three chapters from now). Sorry! :( Please review, lovelies!**

**Disclaimer: Still not mine…**

Hodgins rushed up to the giant man, hand outstretched. He grasped Sam's hand which barely had anytime to intercept the other man's and shook it vigorously.

"Jack. Jack Hodgins. Heard all about you." Jack sighed elatedly, "Sam Winchester" then turned around to face the others, "This is awesome! Fucking ghosts, man? This is better than any secret society I could dream up!" Hodgins was ecstatic; the new man just cemented the others' claims in his mind.

"Right. Sam Winchester, that me." Sam smiled at his so far warm reception, waving at the group before him. No one waved back; they did, however, offer sheepish smiles. None of them had seen a person so tall before. (Booth was wondering if the giant was actually human.)

"Okay Sammy," Dean started, "Here we got Booth," Dean mock whispered to his brother, "We actually have a real FBI agent this time! Next to him we got Dr. Brennan, bones extraordinaire, the beautiful Dr. Cam Saroyan," Dean turned to mock wink at the slightly older woman, "Angela, wife of Hodgins, the… eager man before you." Hodgins turned a little pink, obviously embarrassed by Dean pointing out his intense reaction to Sam's arrival.

"Nice to meet y'all. Sounds like you've already heard of me; I'm Sam, Dean's brother. I do the brain work." Sam introduced himself, earning a light, playful punch from the older man. Castiel chuckled at the antics between the two; they weren't often happy nowadays.

After a few seconds of standing awkwardly, everyone got back to work. Brennan, Booth, Sam, Cas, and Dean headed over to the FBI building to fill Sam in on everything Dean didn't have the time or patience to explain over the phone. When they got to the building they were greeted by Sweets.

"Agent Booth, Dr. Brennan. Who's this?" Sweets asked, looking at Sam. Sam, who didn't know that Sweets knew about his brother and Castiel, stuck out his hand.

"I'm Sam Hart, a reporter for the Lawrence Daily down in Kansas. This is my associate Dean Jones, and the trainee Cas Nova. We're here for a piece on the heroics of the FBI." Sam spouted the story easily; he had told it often before. Sweets raised an eyebrow at the man's story, easily piecing together who he really was.

"You must be the younger brother. Dean mentioned you'd get here today. Lance Sweets." Sweets said, shaking Sam's hand. Sam looked terrified for a moment, before hurriedly disguising his expression with a nervous smile.

"Relax, Sammy, he knows. He's helping us with the case. He's a shrink for the FBI." Dean piped up, calming his younger brother quickly.

"Ohhh… Sam Winchester, then. Sorry, thought we'd need a cover." Sam said, smiling charmingly. Sweets smiled back, but couldn't help but point out the obvious.

"What if Dean had already given us a cover that was different from yours?" Sweets asked innocently, and Sam's face fell.

"Oh, I guess I didn't think of that…" Sam said, deflated. Normally he would've asked Dean the cover beforehand, but he'd been so sick and was still fighting it off. Yes he'd told Dean he was all better, but in truth Sam was feeling almost the same as he had when Dean had set out. Sam hadn't told Dean, though; he didn't want to worry his brother. If Dean thought he needed to be here, then he'd be here.

"Anyway, Agent Booth, they've found another body. Same location of the stab wound. But here's the kicker: this one was found in the kitchen by her wife. 31, white blonde woman, killed last night when we were here. Her name was Jane Emsery. Her wife found her this morning after she woke up." Sweets informed them

"Are we sure the wife didn't do it?" Booth asked, already suspicious. How could Sweets just take the woman's word at face value? Even if he was a psychologist, he didn't automatically know.

"She's got herself sleeping on tape. Time stamped and everything. She was trying to figure out why she was always so tired in the morning; her doctor told her to take a tape and bring it in to a sleep specialist. Anyway, the tie shows her sleeping, then a crash that woke up the wife, sending her downstairs. She never comes back up. The survivor slept through it because of the sleeping pills her doctor had suggested." Sweets told Booth, "We talked to her doctor; it checks out."

"Send the tape to Angela at the Jeffersonian. She'll see if she can find anything from the sounds." Dr. Brennan suggested, and Sweets nodded and went to send someone to do so.

"What the Hell does that mean?" Booth demanded, though no one in the group could answer. They all just shrugged empathetically. Booth sighed and continued to lead the group to the conference room where all of the evidence was set others then took turns explaining to Sam what they'd found while he had been away.

"Sweets!" Booth soured at the man as he passed the room, "C'mere and give us a psych veal, first glance, at our killer!" Sweets turned into the room, always willing to help.

"Well the killer's abandoned his or her original plan. She or he has either come up with something better, or run into an obstacle. Or it's possible that this was more personal than the others." Sweets offered. Dean nodded, and the group continued filling Sam in for another ten minutes until they finished.

"It seems like we need to figure out what went changed." Booth suggested, and the group nodded in agreement.

"Booth, I need to go to the Jeffersonian to inspect the body." Dr. Brennan said, and Booth agreed. Everyone went to their respective cars, Booth to drop off Dr. Brennan then go to meet Sam, Cas, and Dean at the victim's home to talk to Mrs. Layla Emsery.

**A/N: So there's that. If I get three more reviews then I'll make the next chapter 2,500 words by the day I get the reviews at midnight, I promise! If not then you'll get somewhere between 1,000 and 1,500 by Friday. Please review? I hate holding you guys ransom but if you don't review then I don't feel like anyone likes this story, and there's no point in working through bouts of writer's block, ya know?**

**Check me out on tumblr: .com**


	7. Mrs Emsery

**A/N: Thank you pandasaur727 and guest Sami for reviewing! You guys really have Sami to thank for me getting this out tonight; I was going to finish writing in the morning but Sami's second review really inspired me to finish it and post tonight. It isn't as long as I promised, I know, but I wouldn't have been able to post by tonight if I'd extended it. I'm running into the whole "there's a reason people who write 6,000 word chapters don't post everyday" dilemma. Along with school, it's semi-impossible for me to fit it in. Regardless, I swear one of these rainy days I'll sit down and type out a really long chapter and surprise you all. Anyway, I love my reviewers! **

**Disclaimer: Not mine! I can only claim the Emserys…**

* * *

Dr. Brennan waved goodbye to Agent Booth and walked into the Jeffersonian building. She waved a friendly hello to the security agent near the entrance and swiped her key card to enter the medical platform.

"Dr. Brennan, I trust everything went well?" Cam asked, walking up to the other woman anxiously. She was still quite wary of the new angelic developments to her lifestyle.

"Yes, Booth, Castiel and the Winchesters are going to question Mrs. Emsery." Temperance Brennan replied, smiling pleasantly, "Is the victim on the platform?"

"No, I'm still working on the autopsy." Cam replied, pointing to the nearest of the metal tables in the other room where a body lay out. Dr. Brennan frowned as she walked over to it.

"When can I have Mr. Vasiri clean the bones?" Temperance sighed, exasperated. She understood that Cam had to do the autopsy, but there was nothing Bones could do when there wasn't any, well, _bones_.

"I was about to start. It'll take an hour or two." Cam replied, well aware of how impatient Dr. Brennan could be when it came to getting her bones. When the other woman sighed, Cam took it as a reply and headed into the other room to do the autopsy.

About a half hour later, Brennan was called into the room. Cam had found something quite peculiar.

"Dr. Brennan! Could you come here a moment, please?" Dr. Brennan hurried into the room after Cam called her.

"What is it?" She asked, still on edge from waiting for her bones to be ready. Cam ushered Temperance over to the body. About half of the organs had been weighed and set aside.

"We've go a problem," Cam began, pointing at the ribcage, "There are quite a few… irregularities. One rib is missing, and there are these… markings on the organs. I think you should send Dean a photograph of those. Also, there's this…" Dr. Saroyan opened a sealed Tupperware, "It's the brain. Or more, what's left of it. It seems to have turned liquid." Dr. Saroyan grimaced. Brennan, blinking in surprise, and pulled out her mobile and took pictures of the marks and the brain soup.

"I'm sending Dean the pictures. Let's see what he says." Brennan said quietly, "In the meantime, you should finish the autopsy, and I'll-" Brennan never got to finish her sentence, for her phone interrupted her.

"Brennan." Temperance said into the phone.

"Hey, It's Dean. Where'd you get those pictures you just sent?"

"Dr. Saroyan found them while doing Mrs. Jane Emsery's autopsy. Do you recognize them?"

"Cas says the markings are from all over. None of them coincide for one particular thing."

"And the brain?"

"No fuckin idea. It's like someone microwaved the damned thing."

"Yes, it is."

"Gotta go interview this Layla chick about her wife. Bye."

"Bye." Brennan hung up quickly, and nervously chewed her thumb before looking up at Dr. Saroyan. Cam looked at her questioningly.

"No correlation." Brennan said, defeated. This new body was quite the mystery.

* * *

Dean, Cas and Sam got out of the Impala and waited for Booth's SUV to slide into the homely driveway. The house was cute; stereotypical white picket fence, if you will. Something Dean would want with Cas, if Cas would ever age or be able to live a normal human life. Dean's already decided to abandon this fantasy and be glad he's got his angel while he does. When Booth finally slides up (Though in reality he's only minutes behind the others; Dean just likes to exaggerate.) the group discuss their game plan.

"We can't all go in." Booth reasons, and he's right. Why would there be four FBI agents doing the same thing?

"I'll stay behind." Sam offers, and everyone looks at him questioningly. "What? You're a real FBI agent, and Dean and Cas can make her not feel antagonized if she assumes you're bigoted by pulling the 'gay' card." Dean looks a little miffed for a few seconds, but decides to let it go and just nods and slide his hand around Cas's waist, pulling his boyfriend in a little closer.

"Alright, let's go!" Booth says, ignoring Dean's nuzzling at his boyfriend. The three men walked toward the door and Sam went to settle into the backseat of the Impala. He wanted to see if there were any other similar deaths to Jane Emsery's what with the random markings and soup brain. The Emserys lived a good forty five minutes away from the Jeffersonian, and Sam had been itching to research since Dean's call ten minutes back. Cas had read the messages for Dean and insisted the other man call Dr. Brennan. Sam coughed a few times as he pulled out his laptop, splattering the top with spewed blood. Sam grimaced at his failing health, but convinced himself that he'd be fine in a few days.

Booth knocked on the door as Dean unwrapped his arm from Cas, wanting to appear professional. Soon a tall dark haired woman answered. She was sniffling and her eyes were red; it was obvious she'd been crying.

"Hello?" the woman, presumably Layla, sniffed deeply and straightened up. Booth instantly respected her for her strength. He doubted he'd be able to do the same if Bones died. Booth pull out his badge and Cas and Dean followed suit.

"Hi, I'm Agent Booth from the FBI. This is Agent Crosby and Agent Fitch." Booth introduced, pointing to Cas and Dean, respectively, "We're here to ask you a few questions about your wife's murder.

"Yes, of course. Come in." Layla said, sniffing again before leading the men into her home. The house was decorated simply and tastefully, the walls a pale creme color. Layla led the men into the sitting room.

"Mrs. Emsery, we were wondering what happened this morning." Dean asked empathetically. Layla straightened her back once again before answering.

"I woke up to an empty bed, and assumed Jane was downstairs. She gets up early some mornings just cuz. I love- er, loved, I guess- that about her." Layla looked off mournfully for a few moments before returning to her story, "So I walked downstairs to greet her, and- she was just lying there, on the floor, in a p-puddle off blood." Silent tears began to stream of Layla's face, and her voice became choked. "I called 911 and ran over to her, but… I knew that… She was was no question." Layla et out a choked sob.

"I hate to ask, but is there anyone who might have wanted to harm Jane that you know of?" Booth asked.

"No… No, Jane hated conflict. She'd just sweep it under the rug if it happened outside of home; she didn't want to worry me or waste too much time on it." Layla smiled ruefully, "Too sweet like always… You might want to ask some of her coworkers. They might know of any office conflicts." Booth wrapped up with a few standard questions and got the address of Jane's workplace. The men thanked her and stood to leave.

"Please contact me if you have anymore questions!" Layla called after them, obviously eager to help. The three men knocked on the door of the Impala and Sam looked up. He shut the computer and got out of the car.

"Nothing similar that I could find while y'all were in there." Sam said forlornly. Booth and the others then parted ways to meet up again at Jane's workplace.

* * *

"Hey Bren?" Angela called from her office. Dr. Brennan gratefully entered the room, glad for something to do while Cam did the autopsy.

"Yes, Angela?" Brennan asked, overflowing with anticipation for something to work on. Angela smiled knowingly at her friend's antsyness.

"I think I got something off of the tape." Angela said, pulling up the audio waves window. She fiddled with the controls a little bit then pressed play.

"Hey! What are you-" A sharp clatter finishes the sample from the tape, but the voice had sounded rather… happy? At first, like she'd run into an old friend. Angela looked at Dr. Brennan with a raised eyebrow.

"You know what that means, don't you?" Angela asked.

"Our victim knew the killer." Brennan replied, shocked.

They had a lead.

* * *

**A/N: Please review! Love you guys!**


	8. Killings With the Demon on the Side

**A/N: So this update took FOREVER! It's cos I had a sleepover last Friday, then last Saturday, and a shitload of homework to do Sunday. Yesterday I was exhausted, but today I made myself write! Thank you guys SO much for your reviews; they mean the world to me. **

**Disclaimer: Still not mine!**

Entering the Impala and pulling out into the road, Dean thought. Sam was in the back working on research and Cas was in the passenger seat, lovingly twisting his fingers through Dean's hair. He had chosen to take the car with them rather than flitting around at Dean's insistence.

Dean thought about the case and Sams health. No matter how hard he attempted to hide it, Dean could tell Sam was sick. He decided to leave it, surmising it was just remnants of the bug since Cas hadn't deemed it necessary to bring up. If Sam was seriously ill, then Cas would register it and let Dean know.

Dean also thought about the case. He realized it had to be something witchy or magicy, but all of the other killings had been ritualistic. This new one didn't follow any established patterns nor did it complete the previous established pattern. If there had been one more eight themed killing, Dean would have assumed it was a multi-step plan. This was baffling. Frustrated, Dean frowned a little. Cas noticed and moved his hand to the nape of Dean's neck, attempting to calm his boyfriend. Cas looked over to the taller man.

"What's wrong?" he asked quizzically, tilting his head in an ever-so-Cas manner. Dean's frown lightened up a little; he was pleased his angel had noticed his tenseness. Without removing his eyes from the road, Dean explained his confusion. Maybe Cas could help or maybe he had heard of something similar before.

"This new killing… It's not connected. I doubt there's any rituals or anything… Look, it's a witch, or something along those lines. This new killing? Not connected? Possibly not even a part of the spell-" Dean's phone rang in the midst of explaining.

"Ugh." Dean groaned, "Could you get that?" Cas nodded, picking up the phone and bringing it to his ear, slightly uncomfortably. It seems so strange that people live without hearing each other's minds. Though it is true that the frequency is getting less loud, so I suppose I could fathom it. Ever since I came here with Dean it's been near silent. Cas thought, straining himself for a moment in an attempt to hear his brothers and sisters. Nothing. Cas sighed and pressed the talk button.

"Dean's phone." he rumbled, waiting for the caller to speak. Castiel heard a cough on the other end and a jumbled mess of nervous squeaks. Obviously this was Agent Booth; the man seemed so nervous around Cas. He was a devout man; he probably felt out of place or like he should be worshipping Cas. Castiel smirked at Dean, thinking I wonder if I'd love Dean the way I do if he acted like that around me. I doubt I wouldn't like him at all if he acted like Booth.

"Agent Booth?" Castiel sighed, annoyed at the supposed professional's reaction. He didn't act like that in person; Castiel reasoned it was the shock of talking on the phone with an angel.

"Erm, yes, Castiel. Uhm, update: Brennan told me the killer knew the newest victim. They got audio of the video of Jane Emsery recognizing someone. I think the killer might be at her workplace." Booth reported, freaked out that he was talking to an angel on the phone. Shouldn't angels do something more impressive than use the telephone? Like project their voices into your head, Joan of Arc style? Granted, Brennan was always going on about how it was reasonable to surmise Joan of Arc had frontal lobe epilepsy, but still.

"Great. We're on our way to the elementary school she worked at." Dean spoke up; Cas had put them on speaker phone.

"Actually, I think I'd better go alone. We don't want to freak the killer out and she may've heard of you guys before." Booth suggested, hoping the men would agree. He didn't want to start some weird magical fight in the middle of an elementary school.

"Bobby just sent me an email- there's a demonic possession in D.C. We should go check that out while Booth does that." Sam said to Dean and Cas, reminding both of the men that the giant was still in the car. He'd been silent most of the ride.

"Good plan, Sammy. Hear that Booth? We'll take care of that, you go talk to the teachers." Dean said to the phone. Booth agreed, and they hung up.

"So where's the demon we're gankin'?"

* * *

The two men and one angel pulled up to the suburban house. A man just over six feet tall with bright red hair and a smattering of freckles stepped out. He was thin and lanky, and ran quickly to the Impala, tapping on the window. The men got out of the car to speak to the frantic man.

"Bobby said he'd send somebody. There was a werewolf at my office a few years ago and I helped out with killing it. The hunters then left his number in case I needed any help with any other supernatural stuff. M'name's Fred Weasley." Fred stuck out his hand, and Dean shook it.

"I'm Dean Winchester and that's my brother, Sam. This here's Cas. Where's the demon, Fred?" Dean asked, getting right to business. Fred led them inside as he told them what happened.

"It's in my daughter. Tiny girl to begin with, and not a very powerful demon it seems, 'cause I managed to knock her down with some holy water I keep around and tied her up pretty easily. I just don't know any exorcisms and sure as Hell don't wanna try on my own daughter, so Bobby said he'd send you." Fred led them into the room where an empty chair stood. Ropes lay on the floor around the chair.

"Shit." Fred said before a loud clang was heard and the others turned around to see Fred on the floor, a small red headed girl beside him with a frying pan. Her eyes flicked black for a moment when she saw the hunters and angel.

"Winchesters… I heard you and your little pet angel were in town." the demon taunted, and Dean began reciting the exorcism without hesitation. The demon hissed and proceeded toward Dean, but before he would have to fight a little- albeit possessed- girl, Sam got in the way attempting to block him. The girl laughed and threw the huge man at the wall. Sam got up quickly but quickly crumpled back to the ground- he had sprained his ankle very badly. Castiel attempted to put his hand on the girl's forehead to burn out the demon, but nothing happened. Cas withdrew his hand from her forehead, looking at his palm in confusion.

Dean finished the exorcism before the little girl could go any further, and black smoke spewed from the child's mouth. She crumpled on the ground next to her father. Castiel walked over to Sam and healed his ankle then walked back to the father and daughter and roused them, healing Fred. When Sam stood up he could tell Cas hadn't finished the job; a shooting but ignorable pain hit him with every step, but Sam didn't say anything. He had only succeeded in awakening the other people; it was obvious Fred had a concussion from his dilated pupils. Castiel looked enormously confused. Before he could bring it up, however, the girl realized she was awake.

"Daddy!" she squealed, running to her slightly stumbling father and hugging him tightly. The redhead smiled deeply.

"Ginny! I'm so glad you're safe!" Fred turned to the hunters, "Thank you so much. I'm not sure how I could've explained that to her mother…" Dean chuckled and the three men said goodbye, heading out to the Impala.

It had managed to become late already, and the trio decided it was best to hit the motel. Dean called Booth and let him know that the demon was taken care of and that they'd meet the others in the morning for more updates. When he hung up with Booth, Dean flicked his eyes over to Cas in the passenger seat.

"Cas… What happened to your angel mojo?" Dean asked cautiously, and Castiel grimaced. He'd been wondering the same thing.

"I'm not sure. I couldn't fully heal anyone or remove the demon. I also haven't been hearing much on the 'angel radio'." Cas said, using his trademark air quotes, "I thought the angels were just being quiet, but now I'm not so sure…" Dean nodded sadly.

"Do you think it's got something to do with the case?" Dean asked, and Cas just nodded solemnly.

"I wanna try something. We're goin out to the city limits." Dean said, continuing on the road. Cas looked puzzled, but went along with it. Sam said nothing.

The Impala crossed the city limits and everything was normal for a few moments. After a little while the Impala and its contents started to fade until they disappeared.

When Dean noticed they were about to pass the city limits sign again, he swore and they stopped and turned around back toward the motel.

"We're trapped." Dean guessed, "This whole thing was a trap." Castiel just sat in quiet contemplation until they reached the motel.

"There's been a veil placed over the town. Veils sap an angel's grace quickly and keep specified people inside." Castiel finally spoke up when Dean parked, drawing the two brothers' attention.

"What's that mean?" Dean asked, curious and worried. Cas grimaced before he spoke, wiggling in his seat and answering Dean's question.

"It means… It means we can't leave. And it means that by tomorrow morning, I'll no longer be an angel." Dean sighed and turned to his lover.

"I'm sorry Cas. We'll fix it." Dean promised, feeling guilty he was looking forward to a human Cas.

"I'm not sure I want to. At least this way I can fall without losing my memories. And without the pain." Castiel smiled faintly, and Dean felt his heart rocket in his chest.

"Why do you say that like you were going to fall either way?" Dean asked, holding his breath. Castiel smirked at his worried boyfriend.

"Why do you think?" he smiled, leaning in to kiss his grinning beloved. Before they could make contact, however, Sam coughed and opened his door.

"Well, on that note," he started, gathering his stuff and sliding out, "I think I'll go inside and do some more research." Sam coughed, this time involuntarily, and hustled out of the car, Dean calling after him.

"Bye, Sammy!" his older brother yelled, not moving his face from the soon to be ex-angel before him. Cas smiled again, and leaned in to kiss his hunter passionately.

Sam hurried into the motel and went directly to the bathroom, dry heaving until blood started to splatter the toilet water red. When it was finally over, Sam leaned against the sink and grimaced, wiping his mouth and flushing the bloody water down the disgusting motel toilet. Sam realized his health was getting worse and worse, but he couldn't bare to drag his cmopanions into it. _It will pass_. He kept telling himself that, doing his best to ignore it like he ignored his still painful ankle sprain.

_It will pass._

**A/N: What's this? Am I begging for reviews again? Why indeed I am! Hahaha well love my reviewers! Another thing: I'm really excited about all the lil bits I'm putting in this story! I've got a real, extensive outline and everything! This should be pretty long and thought out if I follow thru! Yay! PS nearly 2,000 words on this one, and it was written really quickly. I've been inspired! hahaha you guys are my inspiration! Please review!**


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